Targeted therapies and radiotherapy

Targeted therapies are at this moment the subject of an intensive research program. Their action is, however, for most of them, cytostatic, and their combination with classical cytotoxic approaches, as radiotherapy, is logical. A lot of experimental data are now available, regarding interactions between radiations and EGF-receptor inhibitors, antiangiogenic therapies, farneysltransferase inhibitors and cell cycle inhibitors. These experimental results are reviewed, and possible mechanisms of interactions are discussed. Preliminary clinical results are reported and criticized. In conclusion, the combination of radiotherapy and targeted therapies seems a promising approach, particularly with the inhibitors of the EGFR pathway and anti-vascular treatments, and require the continuation and intensification of the clinical trials.